


Damaged Goods

by chainsawdog



Series: FTCW Writing Wednesday Prompts [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Prequel Trilogy, Star Wars: The Clone Wars (2008) - All Media Types
Genre: Gen, One Shot, Writing Wednesday
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-26
Updated: 2017-09-26
Packaged: 2019-01-05 22:16:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 717
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12198465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/chainsawdog/pseuds/chainsawdog
Summary: After her battalion suffered 90% losses at the hands of the Separatist General Grevious, Depa fell into a coma that lasted six months. Once she was declared fit for duty, Depa took a Padawan under her wing. A Padawan who won’t stop asking questions.





	Damaged Goods

“Master?”  
  
Caleb’s voice broke Depa’s concentration, and she opened her eyes.  
  
“What is it, young one?” she asked.  
  
A breeze stirred the grass, and Depa took a steady breath. She loved the gardens of the Temple.  
  
“I was speaking with Zett and he asked ‘aren’t you Billaba’s Padawan?’ so I said, yes,” Caleb sat down beside Depa as he spoke.  
  
Depa nodded, indicating that Caleb could continue.  
  
“He asked me if I knew anything about what had happened, why you were in that coma, and I told him that I wasn’t your Padawan then. He said ‘well didn’t you ask her about it?’ and I said, yeah, of course I did, but you didn’t want to talk about it.”  
  
Depa couldn’t help herself; she smiled. Caleb could talk the ears off Gundark. She had chosen him as her Padawan because he was different. He never stopped asking questions.  
  
“So I asked him why he wanted to know, and he said there were rumours that you meditated on a different version of the Jedi Code than everyone else. I said that was silly, there’s only one Code.” He looked at her. “Isn’t there?”  
  
“What happened after you told him that, Caleb?” asked Depa.  
  
Caleb frowned, frustrated that his question hadn’t been answered immediately.  
  
“Well, then Tai came over and asked Zett why he was bothering me,” he said. “I said it was okay. She seemed annoyed, and then Master Windu came over to ask what we were gossiping about so that’s about the time we stopped talking.”  
  
“Could you sense Tai’s emotions?” Depa asked.  
  
Caleb nodded. “They were pretty obvious,” he said.  
  
“And your own?”  
  
Caleb looked at her, confused. “What?”  
  
“How were your own emotions in that moment, Padawan Dume?”  
  
“I… I think I was a bit annoyed at Zett but honestly, I’m more curious why anyone would be saying there’s more than one Code.”  
  
Depa laughed. “I see,” she said. “So is that why you came to me?”  
  
Caleb nodded, his braid swinging.  
  
“Caleb, have you heard the other things that they say about me?” Depa asked, getting to her feet. Caleb stood with her, shaking his head. She started down one of the garden paths, taking note of everything blooming around her.  
  
“What do they say about you, Master?” Caleb asked. “Who are ‘they,’ anyway?”  
  
“They are all sorts,” said Depa. “I have heard the same things from the mouths of younglings as clones from battalions, other than the few who remain from my own. They say that I am damaged.”  
  
“Why would they say that?”  
  
Depa stopped walking, and looked at Caleb. His expression was, as always, innocent and curious. There was no malice in this child, no hatred. As much as Jedi were supposed to shun connections, Depa felt a great love for him. She had never had children – if she had, she would have been cast out of the Order. Yet Depa imagined that her bond with Caleb must be that of a mother and child.  
  
“Because I was,” Depa said, and her voice cracked with sadness. “I was so damaged that I was in that coma for six months. And then, once I had recovered…” she clenched her fists to stop them from trembling. “Then the Council doubted that my mind had recovered, too. I had lost so much and had been so injured, so close to death, that the Council surmised I must be broken.”  
  
Caleb was silent. There was no fear in his eyes, no judgement. Only concern. He reached out and touched her hand gently. She held it for a moment, before looking away.  
  
“I am fine, now,” she said. “But the rumours persist. Caleb… we were not meant to carry such a weight on our shoulders. We are not weapons, my child. No matter what happens I want you to remember that we are keepers of the peace, not warriors.”  
  
Caleb nodded. Then; “Master?”  
  
“Hm?”  
  
“What is the Code?”  
  
Depa hesitated. “Do you wish for me to explain what it means, or are you asking something else?”  
  
“Well, Zett said…” Caleb trailed off, his face bright with hope.  
  
Depa smiled warmly. “Of course,” she said. “I can teach you the Code I meditate on. It has a fascinating history, one that dates back beyond the Old Republic…”


End file.
